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11 June 2015

Being yourself

"You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can
steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you
know what you know. And YOU are the one who'll decide where to go..." - Dr Seuss.

Geez it's difficult to be ourselves in today's world. There are so many trivial distractions - we read about one person climbing a mountain, another one winning a quilt show, another publishing book after book, and a different one managing a demanding job, six children and a relationship with her husband. We compare, we envy, we feel inadequate and, sadly, we often feel like failures.

Yet we're not failures. Failure is merely a label we put on ourselves. It means nothing unless you want it to. Why allow a single word to define you?

You don't need anyone's permission to make decisions about your own life.

It's taken me many years to accept this. I've always been able to make decisions but still felt as if someone else should sanction them. Weird, right? There isn't anyone else in the world who is as good as being me as I am. I don't need anyone to give me permission to be myself, and neither do you. Be proud of your uniqueness, develop a strong sense of self-worth and, most importantly, be responsible for making your own decisions.

We each have a
single life to live, you know. We are the leaders of the way we live it.

It can take a while to learn to be comfortable in your own shoes, and then there are the days doubt catches you by surprise and you have to remember to be strong. The wise words of Dr Suess are a good reminder.